Meheretu, Yonas and Granberg, Asa and Berhane, Gebregiorgis and Khalil, Hussein and Lwande, Olivia Wesula and Mitiku, Mengistu and Welegerima, Kiros and de Bellocq, Joelle Gouy and Bryja, Josef and Abreha, Hagos and Leirs, Herwig and Ecke, Frauke and Evander, Magnus
(2021).
Prevalence of Orthohantavirus-Reactive Antibodies in Humans and Peri-Domestic Rodents in Northern Ethiopia.
Viruses. 13
, 1054
[Research article]
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Abstract
In 2012, Tigray orthohantavirus was discovered in Ethiopia, but its seasonal infection in small mammals, and whether it poses a risk to humans was unknown. The occurrence of small mammals, rodents and shrews, in human inhabitations in northern Ethiopia is affected by season and presence of stone bunds. We sampled small mammals in two seasons from low- and high-density stone bund fields adjacent to houses and community-protected semi-natural habitats in Atsbi and Hagere Selam, where Tigray orthohantavirus was first discovered. We collected blood samples from both small mammals and residents using filter paper. The presence of orthohantavirus-reactive antibodies in blood was then analyzed using immunofluorescence assay (human samples) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (small mammal samples) with Puumala orthohantavirus as antigen. Viral RNA was detected by RT-PCR using small mammal blood samples. Total orthohantavirus prevalence (antibodies or virus RNA) in the small mammals was 3.37%. The positive animals were three Stenocephalemys albipes rats (prevalence in this species = 13.04%). The low prevalence made it impossible to determine whether season and stone bunds were associated with orthohantavirus prevalence in the small mammals. In humans, we report the first detection of orthohantavirus-reactive IgG antibodies in Ethiopia (seroprevalence = 5.26%). S. albipes lives in close proximity to humans, likely increasing the risk of zoonotic transmission.
Authors/Creators: | Meheretu, Yonas and Granberg, Asa and Berhane, Gebregiorgis and Khalil, Hussein and Lwande, Olivia Wesula and Mitiku, Mengistu and Welegerima, Kiros and de Bellocq, Joelle Gouy and Bryja, Josef and Abreha, Hagos and Leirs, Herwig and Ecke, Frauke and Evander, Magnus | ||||||
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Title: | Prevalence of Orthohantavirus-Reactive Antibodies in Humans and Peri-Domestic Rodents in Northern Ethiopia | ||||||
Series Name/Journal: | Viruses | ||||||
Year of publishing : | 2021 | ||||||
Volume: | 13 | ||||||
Article number: | 1054 | ||||||
Number of Pages: | 15 | ||||||
Publisher: | MDPI | ||||||
ISSN: | 1999-4915 | ||||||
Language: | English | ||||||
Publication Type: | Research article | ||||||
Article category: | Scientific peer reviewed | ||||||
Version: | Published version | ||||||
Copyright: | Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0 | ||||||
Full Text Status: | Public | ||||||
Subjects: | (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 3 Medical and Health Sciences > 301 Basic Medicine > Microbiology in the medical area | ||||||
Keywords: | orthohantavirus, rodents, rural community, risk factors, Ethiopia | ||||||
URN:NBN: | urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-p-112777 | ||||||
Permanent URL: | http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-p-112777 | ||||||
Additional ID: |
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ID Code: | 24858 | ||||||
Faculty: | S - Faculty of Forest Sciences | ||||||
Department: | (S) > Dept. of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental Studies | ||||||
Deposited By: | SLUpub Connector | ||||||
Deposited On: | 14 Jul 2021 10:36 | ||||||
Metadata Last Modified: | 14 Jul 2021 10:41 |
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